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THE STORY
of Stockton Springs,
Maine
9
By ALICE V. ELLIS
H
Gc 974.102 St6e 1253502
M. L.
GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01085 8147
The Story of Stockton Springs, Maine
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2019
https://archive.org/details/storyofstocktons00elli
FORT POWNAL
*
THE STORY - OF -
Stockton Springs, Maine
- By - ALICE V. ELLIS
Published by The Historical Committee - of - Stockton Springs
Copyright December 1955 - By -
ALICE V. ELLIS
- For -
The Historical Society of Stockton Springs, Maine
Mrs. Merrill C. Ellis, Sr.
*Mr. Myron Clark
Mr. Medbury Staples
Mrs. Harry Shute
Mrs. Edgar Colcord
Mr. Walter F. Trundy
Mrs. Nicholas Ginn
Mr. James Griffin
Mrs. John Seekins, Sr.
Miss Ethel Colcord
Mrs. Ralph Campbell
Mrs. George H. Hopkins, Sr.
Mrs. Nathaniel Partridge
Mrs. Albert West
Mrs. Myron Clark
Mrs. Junius Stone
Mrs. Irving Merrithew
Mr. Angus Holmes
Mrs. Richard Gardner
Mrs. M. D. Trundy
Mrs. Medbury Staples
*Mr. Willard G. Staples
*Deceased
Printed in U. S. A. by THE KELLEY PRESS, Inc. Belfast, Maine
*Mr. Alvah Treat
Mrs. Fred Black
Goodspeed 5.00
1253502
Acknowledgements
In compiling this history, data was gathered from these sources :
The Shipbuilding Wardwells of Penobscot Bay-July-August, 1954 issue of the Nautical Research Journal-Article by John Lyman Progressive Age Newspaper, August 4, 1859, copy Historical Sketch of Stockton Springs by Miss Faustina Hichborn Genealogical and Family History of Maine by Thomas Little Shipping Days on The Penobscot by Lincoln Colcord and George S. Wasson The Town Register of Searsport, Stockton Springs and Prospect, 1907, by Mitchell, Daggett, Tweksbury and Walton Material supplied by the Maine State Library History of Maine by Louise Clinton Hatch, Ph. D.
Maine Forts by Henry E. Dunnack Williamson's History of Maine
Williamson's History of Belfast
James Stower's Journal
Charles Heath's scrapbooks
Mrs. George H. Hopkins' scrapbook
Walter F. Trundy's scrapbook
An Old River Town by Ada Littlefield
Bangor Daily News
Republican Journal
History of Pownal Lodge, No. 119 (1893) Colby's Atlas of Maine
Mrs. Marjorie Arsenault's scapbook
Grateful acknowledgement is made for the assistance of those people without whose help and encouragement the work would not have been completed. Among this group are:
Mrs. Avis Nichols, Union, Maine
Mrs. May Partridge, Sandy Point
Mrs. Alfred Fayle
Mrs. Glennie Ellis, Searsport, Maine Willard G. Staples Miss Emma Hulen
Mrs. Edmund J. Littlefield Rev. Cleo Russell
Miss Phyllis Herrick, Portland, Maine
Fred L. Webster, Belfast, Maine Mrs. Neota Rooney, Belfast, Maine
Mrs. Marieta Smith, Sandy Point Mrs. Herbert Smith, Sandy Point Ray Webb, Sandy Point
Miss Ida Merrithew
Mrs. Jennie Wentworth
Mrs. Nellie Merrithew
Mrs. James Griffin
Mrs. Mary Winslow
Mrs. Norma Gage, Brownville, Maine Mrs. Augustus Dodge, Searsport, Maine Dr. A. O. Stein, Nyack, N. Y.
Dr. Arthur Merz, Oklahoma City, Okla. Edmund J. Littlefield Roscoe Porter, Searsport, Maine Mrs. Nicholas Ginn Mrs. Edith Colcord
Mrs. Edna Young Mrs. Roland Harrison
Howard Johnson Mrs. Grace Stone, Sandy Point Mrs. George H. Hopkins Walter F. Trundy
Mr. and Mrs. Albert West, Sandy Point Mrs. Clara Campbell
Mrs. Marjorie Ellis Arsenault, Belfast, Me. Mrs. Arthur H. Smith, Sandy Point
Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Heath, Sandy Point Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Berry
Mrs. Warren Haskell Mrs. Louise Kingsbury Seekins Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln Gardner Mrs. Grace Stotler, Sandy Point Mrs. Grover Jordon, Bangor, Maine James B. Vickery, Jr., Unity, Maine Mrs. Earl Dow, Sandy Point Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Colcord Mrs. Cora Perkins, Sandy Point Douglas Crosby, Sandy Point Charles Gray, Prospect
Earl Cunningham Leo McKeen Mrs. Muriel Pierce, Belfast, Maine Mrs. Marion Morrison Mrs. Preston Nutting
Mrs. Harold Hawes, Dallas, Texas Col. Eugene Johnson Mrs. Edward Curtis, Sandy Point Mrs. Georgianna Worcester Jones Ernest Trundy Medbury Staples Lester Bragg
Mrs. Ursula Black, Sandy Point
Mr. and Mrs. Edward Libby, Sandy Point Mrs. Amy Griffin Brewer Mrs. Alice May Hichborn Mrs. Evelyn Colcord Shute Robert Applebee, Searsport Mrs. Marion Currier, Bangor and Sandy Point Arthur Perkins, Sandy Point
Neil S. Bishop Miss Ethel Colcord Mrs. Sewell White
Mrs. Estelle Crosby, Sandy Point Mrs. Ethel Clark ยท Mrs. Jennie G. Harding, Manchester, Conn.
Table of Contents
Chapter I
THE FORT
1
II EARLY SETTLERS 11
III LIFE IN THE GOOD DAYS 40
IV MAIL 49
V
INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT
OUR TOWN
.
53
VI CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS . 80
VII SHIPS AND SHIPBUILDING . 101
VIII WARS 153
IX RAILROAD . 162
X BUSINESS 172
XI PROFESSIONALS . 205
XII CLUBS AND LODGES 209
CHAPTER I The Fort
Our town-site was once the hunting ground of the Abnaki Indians. Later the Tarretine Indians-a wandering, war-like tribe-overcame the Abnaki; intermarried with them and made the tribe now known as the Penobscots. Their carrying ground on Cape Jellison was a narrow strip of land between Lowder's Brook and the Mill Pond. In the old records the Mill Pond was called Illision Harbor.
The French started trading with the Indians in this area about 1605. About 1630, the English established a trading house at Pentagoet, which was the peninsula where Castine stands today.
Before the year 1759 there were no English settlers in the valley of the Penobscot. It was a vast wilderness. There is a question as to whether the French had ever settled here tem- porarily. If they did, no traces of settlements were found by the early English settlers and explorers.
The first permanent white settlers in the valley of the Penob- scot arrived in 1759. They were a posse of four hundred men led by Thomas Pownal, the Royal Governor of Massachusetts Bay Colony. The posse came up the Penobscot River and landed on a peninsula called Wassaumkeag in the town now called Stockton Springs, but which was called Aguhasidek by the Indians. The name Aguhasidek means "otter slides". Penobscot and Wassaumkeag were Indian names. Penobscot means "water that flows over rocks".
Gov. Pownal and his men were transported from Boston to the Penobscot in the frigate "King George". They were ac- companied by the sloop-of-war, "Massachusetts", which was commanded by General Samuel Waldo.
Previous to 1759 the early settlers west of the Penobscot were greatly annoyed by Indian raids, which were often insti- gated and led by the French. Settlements were stealthily ap- proached and suddenly attacked. The settlers were murdered, mutilated, or taken captive. After the British seized the St. John River, the French and Indians had no outlet to the sea except down the Penobscot. So the Penobscot River was the avenue through which these raids were made upon the settle- ments. The British decided that a fort built on the Penobscot would stop the Indian raids; also, block the French from the sea. The posse was sent here to find a suitable place to erect the fort.
The British claimed this territory because of a land grant which was granted, March 2, 1630, by the Crown of England, to Thomas Leverett of Boston, England and to John Beau- champ of London, England. It was called the "Muscongus Patent" or grant. It extended from the seaboard between the Penobscot and Muscongus rivers, to an unsurveyed line run- ning east and west, so far north as would, without interfering with the Kennebec Patent or any other, embrace a territory equal to thirty miles square. Later this patent was known as the "Lincolnshire Patent", from the place of residence in Eng- land of one of the grantees. In 1720, the grandson of Thomas Leverett divided the tract into ten shares. This was the origin of the term "Ten Proprietors Tract". These facts were re- corded in the York County records in 1721. About 1740, one hundred thousand acres, belonging first to the Ten Proprietors and later to General Waldo, were set off as the "Waldo Patent".
Because the title was in dispute, General Waldo was em- ployed to go to England and defend the claims of the "Ten . Proprietors". For this service Waldo received two-thirds of this entire grant. The ten proprietors had only one third left. Later, they gave one-sixth to twenty associates who agreed to settle on the tract. Those twenty grantees settled in the vicinity of Camden. The proprietors now had one-sixth left.
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This tract included what was the old town of Frankfort, part of Monroe, all of Hampden, and much of Bangor; forty-three thousand acres in all.
General Waldo once offered to give one thousand acres of this land to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts if the govern- ment would erect a Province House on the Penobscot River. General Waldo did not accompany Governor Pownal in an official capacity on the expedition to the Penobscot. He joined the expedition because of personal interest in this large land grant.
May 4, 1759, four hundred men embarked from Boston. They reached Falmouth, Maine, May 8, and the next day arrived off the Georges River. They remained there several days. From there Governor Pownal sent part of his force across country to what is now Belfast. They met the ship there on May 15. The ships reached what is known today as Fort Point Harbor, May 17, 1759.
The landing took place at the angle formed by the point and the isthmus, on the west side of the harbor. They reconnoitered the place and encamped on the point then called Wassaumkeag Point. Forty men were sent with axes to clear a path about a rod wide on the Indian carrying ground. Here a log redoubt was built with a guard room large enough to accommodate twenty-five men. This was completed within five days of landing. A like avenue was cut across the narrowest place in the point and the same kind of a redoubt built which included a guardhouse. A road two rods wide was cut in a direct line from this avenue to the point.
On May 21 a "Nine Pounder" was brought ashore and ex- perimentation made of its capacity to command the river. Placed horizontally it threw shot into the channel about half way across. At a certain elevation it threw shot across the channel into the woods on the opposite shore.
3
Although the spot seemed suitable for the site of the fort, the governor would not build the fort until he had made further explorations. With a detachment of one hundred and thirty- six men, he went up the river on May 22. The next day he landed on the east side of the river above Bangor .* While ashore he buried a plate with this inscription: "May 23, 1759- Province of Massachusetts Bay, Dominion of Great Britain: Possession confirmed by T. Pownal, Governor."
It was here that General Samuel Waldo, who had accompa- nied the expedition, had a stroke of apoplexy and died in a few minutes. It is written that General Waldo was a man of great distinction. He was the son of a wealthy Boston merchant. He was an accomplished gentlemen; an elegant military officer; and a traveler. He had crossed the Atlantic Ocean fifteen times.
The expedition returned to Wassaumkeag Point the next day, bringing the remains of the General. A vault was pre- pared, and on the following day at evening, May 25, 1759, the hero was buried with military honors and religious services. The services were conducted by Rev. Mr. Phillips. Later General Waldo's remains were moved to Boston.
Governor Pownal decided to build the fort on Wassaumkeag Point. He erected a flag-staff and hoisted the King's colors with all the ceremonies usual on such an occasion. Divine services were held to commemorate this important event.
After giving instructions for the building the fort Governor Pownal embarked for Boston, May 26. He reached Boston Harbor, May 28. He had been twenty-four days on his journey.
Plans for the fort were designed by the architect, Gershon Flagg. Work on the fort was started May 23, 1759. It was completed July 28, 1759 .* It cost $25,000. The fort was called "The Penobscot" but the name was changed to Fort
* Williamson says that Pownal landed on the west side of the Penobscot River but Governor Pownal's Journal says that he landed on the east side.
* One historical source says that the fort was completed on July 6, 1759.
4
Pownal in honor of Governor Pownal. Governor Pownal is said to have been the most popular governor of the Common- wealth of Massachusetts.
A description of the fort and a plan of it was made by Joseph P. Martin in 1828. The following description of the fort is found in Williamson's History of Maine, vol. 11, page 336.
"The fort was located about twenty-five rods from the shore, where the remains of the breastwork may yet be seen. It was a regular fortification with parapet and ditch. The whole was in form of a square and at each corner were flankers. The fort was ninety feet long on each side. The breastwork was ten feet high. This was surrounded by a moat or ditch fifteen feet wide at the top, five at the bottom and eight in depth. Each ex- terior side of the ditch was two hundred and forty feet. In the middle of the ditch were palisades quite around the fort, except at the portcullis, or entrance, at the eastern side, where a draw- bridge crossed the ditch. In the ditch at the foot of the wall was a line of pickets. Between the fort and the river were several houses, one of which was the residence of the commander of the fort. Within the walls was a square block-house, forty- four feet on a side, with flankers at each corner, of diamond form, thirty-three feet on a side. The whole was constructed of squared timber, dovetailed at the corners and trenailed. The height of the block-house-in two stories-was about twenty- two feet; the roof was square or hipped and had a sentry box upon the top. On the roof were mounted several coehorn mortars and on the area between the breastwork and walls of the blockhouse, twenty feet in width, three or four cannon were mounted. The upper story of the breastwork jutted over the lower about three feet, the space being covered with loose plank, easily removable. The lower story was used as a bar- racks and in the upper one, where ten or twelve small cannon were mounted, garrison exercises were performed in stormy weather. There were two chimneys, one in the northwest and one in the southwest corners."
5
A little brick English Chapel was built near the fort. The bricks were baked in England and sent to the colonies. Some of these bricks have been dug up in recent years. The well which was dug to furnish water for the fort is used today by the keeper of the lighthouse.
Governor Pownal changed the name of Wassaumkeag Point to Fort Point. He also buried a plate at the fort which reads: "May 23, 1759, Province of Massachusetts Bay, Dominion of Great Britain, possession confimed by Thomas Pownal, Gov- ernor."
General Jedidiah Preble purchased a large tract of land on Fort Point. The deed reads as follows: Under the date of October 29, A. D. 1762, the "Heirs of General Samuel Waldo, in consideration of the sum of seven hundred and twenty pounds by us received of General Jedidiah Preble, of Penobscot in the County of Lincoln-the receipt of which we hereby acknowledge .- By these Present have granted, bargained, sold, aliened, released and conveyed to said Jedidiah Preble, his heirs and Assigns, forever two thousand and seven hundred acres of land, in the Neck of Land whereon Fort Pownal stands; in case said Neck itself shall contain so many Acres; and if it shall fall short of said Number of Acres, the said defective Quanity to be laid out in the land next adjoining to said Neck, in one square body, in a place called Penobscot, in the County of Lincoln."
November 12, 1764, Col. Goldthwaite and Gov. Sir Francis Bernard purchased General Preble's land.
Fort Pownal is one of the most important landmarks in the State of Maine. Until 1783 the Penobscot River had been the eastern boundary of Maine. If the fort hadn't been built, all of Maine east of the Penobscot River would have remained a part of Canada, or would have become a new province, as the English suggested during the Revolutionary War, named New Ireland with the capital at Castine.
In 1783 the United States sent commissioners to Paris. Those commissioners asked that the St. Croix River, instead of the
6
Penobscot River, be made the eastern boundary of Maine. John Adams won by showing Governor Pownal's records of occupation of Fort Pownal, in Stockton, in Maine. A treaty was signed making the St. Croix River Maine's eastern bound- ary.
The first commander of the fort was General Jedidiah Preble, a native of Wells, Maine. He was a mariner in early life. While he was at the fort, he was considered a good commander. He had a force of one hundred to one hundred and fifty men. That number of men were stationed at the fort until the downfall of French power in the north, then the number was reduced and a mere guard was kept at the fort. These soldiers were supplied with provisions, blankets, and camp utensils. Each soldier was paid six dollars a month if he furnished his own firearms.
Gen. Preble made a treaty with the Indians of this locality which was never broken. A truck house was established at the fort for trade with the Indians and a large trade in furs was carried on. The Indians had no idea of the value of the furs, so they traded them freely for any necessity or trinket that suited their fancy. One old settler told an early historian that he had seen one of the flanker rooms at the fort well filled at times with first quality furs-beaver, otter and sable.
In 1763, General Preble resigned the command of the fort. He was succeeded, September 12, 1763, by Thomas Gold- thwaite, a native of Chelsea, Mass. Goldthwaite had been a merchant in Boston before coming to take this command. He was an agent of the Waldo heirs and had been instructed by them to survey, settle, and develop their land in Frankfort Plantation. This land included a strip from what is now Bangor to Belfast. While at the fort Goldthwaite was commissioned as a justice of the peace and solemnized the first marriages along the river. He was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas and a commander of the second militia regiment in Lin- coln County. In 1770, he was superseded by John Preble, son of Gen. Preble, but Governor Hutchinson, an ardent royalist, came into power the following year and reinstated Goldthwaite.
7
In March 1775, he permitted Capt. Mowet, of the British sloop-of-war, Canseau, to dismantle the fort. Mowet took away all the heavy guns and ammunition. In July, 1778, soon after Castine was occupied by the British, Colonel Cargill came from Newcastle and burned the blockhouse and curtilage .* Later by order of the government, the remains of the fort were completely destroyed; the ditches were filled in and the breast- work leveled. *
Goldthwaite was accused of being a traitor to the colonies because he surrendered the fort. He was removed from com- mand and all his commissions were revoked. He joined the British. One historian says that he did not live long, as he was drowned during the Revolutionary War by the shipwreck of the vessel in which he had taken passage to Nova Scotia. An- other historian states that Col. Goldthwaite returned to Eng- land and lived there the rest of his life.
Goldthwaite's great-grandson, Capt. Richard Goldthwaite Carver, of the U. S. Army wrote a pamphlet exonerating his ancestor from the charges of being a traitor. The reason he claimed was that the colonel knew his forces were too small to resist the British. He felt that all lives would be lost if a battle were fought.
All records seem to agree on the fact that Goldthwaite was known as an unkind man. The records at the fort showed that the prices which he charged for goods was exorbitant. Indians and early settlers complained of his unfairness. Williamson in his History of Belfast wrote thus: "About 1775 or 1776 the inhabitants of Belfast suffered for want of provisions. One oc- casion of the scarcity was that they were short of ammunition, and could take but little wild game. Goldthwaite at the fort, had ammunition entrusted to him for the public good. In their distress, they applied to him for a supply; he treated them
* Historians seem to disagree on the date of the destruction of the fort. One authority gives the date as July, 1775.
* One authority gives the date of the destruction of the fort as July 1779 and said it was destroyed by Commodore Saltonstalle.
8
roughly, and sent them away empty handed. But as hunger is most imperious in its demand, they not long after made another application, determined they would not be denied. Taking what ammunition they had, and their guns in good order, a number of men made a second visit after this wise: drawing near the fort they deputed two of their members, Messrs. Nichols and Davidson, to go in advance of the company and make application. They were coldly repulsed, and cruelly denied. They told him they were determined to have am- munition, and would take it by force of arms, if they could not get it without. By this time their company was in sight. They said, "Here come our assistance and you may see them. We are determined not to be treated as the two men who came to you on this business before." He cooled down, and gave each man a pound of powder, and ball and flint. They returned to Belfast in good spirits."
This anecdote was mentioned in an old newspaper article concerning Goldthwaite:
"Goldthwaite was on a visit to one Mr. Stinson, a poor man. He saw a young cow and claimed she was his and took her, re- fusing to pay Mr. Stinson for her. However, the tables were turned on him by the Indians. Goldthwaite was the first ship- builder on Penobscot River or Bay. He had a brig built for his own use which was launched in 1774. At the launching he held a feast. He hired some Indians to procure some moose meat for the feast. After a short time they returned to the fort with some nice, fat moose-meat. All the cooks at the gar- rison were set to work to prepare the meat in a variety of dishes. The guests and Col. Goldthwaite said it was the best moose-meat they had ever eaten. A few days later, Col. Gold- thwaite discovered that the excellent moose-meat was his own favorite three year old colt!"
Col. Goldthwaite's daughter married Francis Archibald, who was the accountant at the fort. He wrote the accounts in a book which was sixteen inches by six and a half inches by one inch. The title of the book was the "Wast Book". The
9
first page was dated December 1, 1772, Penobscot, New England. The accounts were carried up to 1777.
Francis Archibald cut his foot severely with a hatchet and bled to death shortly before his daughter was born. Mrs. Archibald, known as "Miss Polly," was insane after the birth of this baby. When her family returned to Boston, "Miss Polly," who was later known as "Miss Farley," was left with the great-grandparents of Walter F. Trundy, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Martin. She lived with the Martins until her death. The "Wast Book",was in her possession and she gave it to Mr. Martin. Later it was in the possession of the family of N. G. Hichborn.
In 1775, after Col. Goldthwaite was removed from the com- mand of the fort, Col. Jonathan Buck of Buckstown, now Bucksport, was made superintendent of the remains of the fort. The trading house was kept up until 1777.
July 28, 1859 a centennial celebration was held at Fort Point. Eight thousand people attended. The Belfast Ar- tillery, commanded by Capt. Cunningham; the Bangor Light Infantry, commanded by Lieut. Wiggin; the Castine Light Infantry, commanded by Capt. Devereaux; and the Bangor Cornet Band took part in the ceremonies. General S. S. Heagan, Chief Marshall, took charge of the parade; Joseph W. Thompson, Esq., was chairman of the committee of ar- rangements; Hon. N. G. Hichborn was toastmaster; Rev. Stephen Thurston of Searsport was the orator; and Rev. Jerome Harris was the chaplain. The Rev. Joshua Hali of Frankfort, ninety-one years of age, was made President of the Day. He was assisted by the following vice-presidents: Capt. John Odom and Paul Hichborn, Esq., Stockton; Henry Darl- ing, Bucksport; Hon. Adams Treat and Robert Treat, Esq., of Frankfort; Hon. Hannibal Hamlin of Hampden; Hon. E. L. Hamlin and Hon. A. M. Roberts of Bangor; Capt. Phineas Pendleton, Capt. Jeremiah Merrithew and Charles Gordon, Esq., of Searsport; Josiah Farrow, Esq., and J. P. Furber, Esq., of Belfast; John Heagan and Elisha Grant of Prospect.
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CHAPTER II
Early Settlers
The protection of the garrison at Fort Pownal encouraged settlers to come to this region and build homes. Other factors which encouraged settlement were the natural resources of this locality such as: one of the best natural harbors on the coast; sheltered coves; beautiful virgin forests of rock maple, beech, birch, spruce, hemlock, pine and oak; fish in abundance; suitable soil for agriculture; and an endurable climate. Also, the requirements for settlement were reasonable.
Col. Thomas Goldthwaite and Francis Bernard, son of Gov- ernor Bernard, made an agreement with the Waldo proprietors, that in consideration of a grant of two thousand and seven hundred acres of land in the region of the fort, they would agree to settle thirty families; to hire an Episcopal minister; to build a chapel; and to attempt a settlement. The agreement was partially fulfilled.
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